buckeye traveller

Trained as a journalist, it always fascinates me when I come across a historical person who figured prominently in my field of study. Today we travelled to Piatt's Castles in West Liberty, Ohio. Donn Piatt lived in the 19th century (he died in 1891), and won fame for his caustic writing and opinions, mostly on political matters. He created a newspaper (The Capital, in Washington D.C.) and edited others. He also had a distinguished career as a lawyer, and even a judge. Oh, and had a "castle" built as well! His brother Abram built another close by, and today we have the dueling castles (although at one point in time there was acrimonious debate about whether the lesser of the 2 should actually be called a chateau!).... read more

9:30 p.m. We arrived at our KOA campsite in Wapakoneta at 7:30 p.m. It rained during our entire trip up here, as we travelled on State Route 33. It's a charming little camp, although a bit closer to the main highway than we'd hoped (This KOA is actually rated No. 5 of the 400+ in North America!). We have a small 2-room Kabin, with a mini-fridge, some outlets, beds in each room and that's about it. We have a fire pit outside that we'll look forward to using -- and we even have some damp firewood to use! The busy summer season has yet to arrive, so the site is very quiet. THE HIGHLIGHT of this evening was our trip into the Wapakoneta Wal-Mart ... yes, there is a Wal-Mart right down the street, so we ... read more